When the Bad dies… Acts 12:19-25

We will start off where we ended last week. Peter had been put in jail and was scheduled to bebeheaded after the holidays. Herod felt it was a grand idea and one that would put him in good companywith the Jewish leaders. But God stepped in and freed Peter from certain death. God had used theprayers of the believers at Mary’s house. In fact, they were shocked that Peter was freed; they really didnot even believe their own eyes! Peter told them what had happened and then took off to hidesomewhere in Jerusalem. The church was pleased and encouraged and so should we. Many times, Godanswers our prayers well beyond our own understanding.

In fact, Mark 11:24 Therefore I tell you,whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

Ephesians 3:20Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us,

And, again: James 1:6 But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubtsis like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.But when you do ask, we may not really believe. We need to work on that, don’t we?

Our prayers need to go well beyond what we pray and be open to what He wants to do and give. Intruth, the Fellowship there at Mary’s house needed to grow up in their understanding of the power ofprayer as much as we need to grow up. Seek Him while He is near and speak to Him. Be confident andtrust Him for the outcome.

In that time in Acts, the Church needed to give respect and honor to those who rule over them. Luke 6:28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.We are to pray for those who rule over us as well. For the government leaders, civic and social,religious and those who are over us in our families. We need to pray for them and not rebel. There is a‘safety net’ over us that the government provides. But the demand of total loyalty could turn to totalopposition when the State faces believers who are confessing, “Jesus is Lord of ALL!”Over all things. In

Ephesians 1:22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him tobe head over everything for the church. All through human history, we can see certain governments who oppose Christian teaching and doctrine. This story in Acts SHOULD give us confidence today and would let the non-believers know that the State cannot stop the growth of the Church.

ILL: China, Cuba, North Korea, Saudi Arabia.They brought pain & Death to some of the faithful but they could NOT destroy ALL the remnant! TheBattle belongs to the Lord. His right Hand=Power & Righteousness.

How do we respond when the bad die?

When we watch movies, read novels and watch TV, when the bad are gaining power, we kind of know that the good would win in the end. When the movie/book or TV show ends with the bad winning, we feel –violated. The Good Should Always Win—we feel. But sometimes, it does not. Not at that time andspace. Psalm 73:11-18We tend to look for the good ending in things—in life and when it does not happen, we tend to feellet down. Let down by God, by reality, in life. We want the ability to re-write the end of the story. Here is Acts 12:19, we see that power—complete power can lead a man to murder. Herod had power of life anddeath. When the guards woke to find that their prisoner was GONE you can well imagine how they felt!They were responsible for the well-being of the one they were guarding. If that person had escaped, thentheir very life would be on the line. Herod interrogates the 16 guards (guarded with four squads of foursoldiers each, rotating in three-hour shifts at night) and finds no real explanation of the missing Peter, sohe has them killed. Who cares? Do you care if men die? Does God? Because God places value on Life all life!

In Ezekiel 33:11 Say to them, 'As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, I take no pleasurein the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evilways! Why will you die, O house of Israel?'If He cares, should we also care? In the real world, there are so many who die each day. Shouldwe morn for all those people as well? I don’t think so, but we should care. We are to be praying for thelost so that they could hear and place their trust in the Savior. Even in this account, it does not say it, but the Fellowship does not seem to loose sleep over their death.Herod has the power of life and death yet he lacks something very crucial. Remember, Powerwithout authority is kin to mob rule. If one is to have authority, he should show that his power is gauged byhow he response to outside pressure. Here, Herod just drives away. He lacks the real power of leading:Mercy.Herod travels to the administrative capital of Judea—Caesarea, on the coast of the Med. Sea.Those who live there are in deep need of the grain of Judea.

From Ezek 27:17 " 'Judah and Israel tradedwith you; they exchanged wheat from Minnith and confections, honey, oil and balm for your wares.” Welearn that the trade between these to areas has been going on for a long time. There was some form ofconflict between him and the people of Trye and Sidon. It was very necessary for them to work somepositive arrangement out as they needed the King’s food supply. Ever hear the old saying “Don’t bite thehand that feeds you”?They had worked their way into Herod’s very household by befriending the trusted personal servant ofHerod, Blastus. He was his chamberlain. Close to the King, he could speak with him all the time. Thecity folk got to the king thru this man. We don’t know what the full problem was nor what measures Herodtook to displease the two cities but they were very concerned. Have you asked for peace? Has therebeen a division between you and another? Here are the steps to reconciliation and restoration.

Patterns of Confrontation- Matthew 18:15-17; Gal 6:1.
Requirements of Forgiving- Pray- Matt 5:44; Love-Matt 5:44;
Carry Each Others Burden- Gal 6:2;
Goal of Forgiving- Rom 12:21;
As the Lord forgave you…- Matt 18:33.

Herod was at the top of his power. Not only had Rome ‘given’ him all of Judea but also he had theright to bring pressure on the surrounding communities for taxes. On the day of this peace talk, which wasalso the day to honor Caesar with some sport games, he came to the theater wearing his best cloths.Josephus reports “clad in a garment woven completely of silver so that its texture was indeed wondrous,he entered the theatre at daybreak. There the silver, illumined by the touch of the first rays of the sun, waswondrously radiant and by its glitter inspired fear and awe in those who gazed intently upon it." Thetheater seats faced west. No wonder that as Herod addressed the assembly, which included the populaceof Caesarea as well as the delegation from Tyre and Sidon, they cried out, “This is the voice of a god, andnot of a man.”Herod does not refuse this claim. He rather likes it! Flattery kills the cat! He breaks the first two commandments. Herod does not give glory to God but keeps it to himself. He received the worship of thepeople. He made himself the object of false worship. God brings fast and painful punishment to him.Immediately an angel of the Lord strikes him down and worms eat him. He experiences pain in the heartand stomach—bleeding from a perforated appendix, combined with intestinal roundworms, ten to sixteeninches long. (Bunches of these can obstruct the intestines, causing severe pain, copious (abundant)vomiting and finally death.) This excruciating condition continues for five days until he dies.All people everywhere, must be duly warned by Herod’s arrogant attitude. The Lord of all is Lord of all. He will not share His Glory with another.

Isa. 42:8 "I am the LORD; that is My name! I will not give My Glory to another or My praise to idols.;Isa. 48:11 For My own sake, for My own sake, I do this. How can I let myself be defamed? I will notyield My Glory to another.This is worth looking at. How does that fit in with my life? Do I allow certain things into my life thattake Glory away from the Lord. What sorts of idols do I hold onto that would prevent His blessing to flowinto my life. What sort of glory do we give to another?“Ding dong, the wicked king is dead.” And the next few verse tells us how the early Christianshandled that news.The worms ate King Herod but the Holy Spirit continued to increase and spread. The World Systemcannot keep the Power of God down. It may appear at times to be that way, but never fear, His Spirit ishere! And with that bit of news: When Barnabas and Saul had finished their mission, they returned from Jerusalem, taking with them John, also called Mark.Herod was cut off after only four years of rule but the Spirit of God and the work of His Churchknows no such incompleteness in any aspect. The two men had finished their work and went home, bringyoung Mark with them.
Is our work over?
Is it done?
Are we taking off and going home?

I dare say, NO. Many need theGood News and we are the ones to bring it to them. We all need to work at extending forgiveness so theLord will forgive us of our sins.The Bad die but the Righteous keeps on working.